Human Nature (Part 2)
Martha and Evy raced back to the school, Evy a bit concerned. The sensation of the Time Lord essence had only lasted a moment, most likely someone else had found the watch and opened it briefly. Certainly not John, she certainly would have sensed that. But it worried her that she didn't know who.
They half threw their bikes to the side as soon as they were near enough to the school, running in towards John's study. Evy stopped short, Martha almost crashing into her, as she looked above her, "It's not in his study," she told Martha, "Someone's taken the watch away."
Martha looked at the stairs then back to Evy, "Go," she said, pushing her to the stairs, "Go find them, I'll watch John, see if he's ok."
Evy nodded and raced up the stairs, whoever had the watch was keeping it open longer this time. She was afraid. The Family was there, that much was certain, if the watch remained open too long they'd be able to find it.
She nearly stumbled as images of the Daleks, Cybermen, Ood, the werewolf from Torchwood Manor, the Racnoss, Lazarus, and the Sycorax assailed her. Suddenly they were gone, the watch had been shut. She followed the remnants of the sensations she'd felt and crept slowly through the corridor finding a door slightly ajar.
There, sitting on a bed, alone in the dormitory, was a boy she recalled John calling Timothy in class, with the watch in his hand.
She was about to knock on the door and speak to him when a hand bell began to ring signaling a change of classes. Knowing the dormitory would soon be filled with children moving to change books and retire or head to class, she quickly made her way back to John's study as he was leaving for class.
He gave her a wide smile and tipped his hat to her as he passed. She nodded to him before half running into the study to see Martha searching the mantel for the watch.
"Timothy has it," Evy called, startling her a bit.
"Timothy Latimer?" Martha frowned.
She nodded, "The bell rang before I could talk to him and get it back."
Martha sighed, "He's in John's class this period, maybe we can catch him after?"
"It's as good a plan as we have right now," Evy shook her head, "What class is it again?"
~8~
To say she was shocked to see the Doctor, the man who abhorred violence, teaching children how to fire machine guns was an understatement. Martha had led her out the side of the building where they could observe the students during target practice and so they were just standing there off to the side, watching.
"I never thought I'd ever see him actually condoning the use of guns," Evy shook her head in thought, "He's so different."
"I know," Martha agreed, no matter how long she'd been there, working for John Smith, it still caught her by surprise how different he was to the Doctor.
They watched in silence as Nurse Redfern approached a small patio and watched the proceedings as well. The boys soon led Timothy off to a tent while John went to speak to the matron, most likely about his journal. They stiffened just a bit when the nurse walked away and he glanced over to see them standing there.
He smiled brightly and lifted a hand in greeting, though they both could tell it was directed towards Evy. Not wanting to be rude, she lifted her hand to give him a mock salute. He laughed at that before walking off to join the boys in the tent for evaluation.
"I've been wondering…" Martha began as they watched John lecturing the boys, "Why's he suddenly so smitten with you? I mean, I know it's got to have something to do with the Link right?" she hesitated when Evy didn't speak, "What exactly does the Link do? You've told me about the process of Linking, that you can read his mind and feel him...is that it though?"
Evy swallowed, "Those are the bright sides of the Link."
Martha frowned, "There's a down side then?"
She sighed, looking at her, "The Link creates an instant connection between Time Lord and Lady...a deep connection. One so deep that...to be without it..." she took a breath, "It's torture."
She reached out and took Evy's hand, squeezing it, "How so?"
"To have that connection severed, typically through...death. It's like tearing out a part of your soul, according to the records. It hurts so much Martha that you're in your own personal hell, basically unable to function, in constant pain, until..."
"Until?"
"Until you end it," Evy replied quietly.
The connection, no matter what feelings developed from it, ran so deep that you literally felt like you'd lost a part of yourself that you'd never get back. To be without part of your soul, to be without the Link, was crippling. It was agonizing. To be that connected to another person and have it suddenly taken away...it didn't happen often, before the war that is. Gallifrey had been relatively safe, no chance of sudden deaths, but then the Daleks attacked...
"Is the Filter working on John?" Martha asked suddenly, changing the topic, if only slightly, seeing the tears in Evy's eyes at the thought of the breaking of a Link, "Is it keeping him from Linking or would it not work because he's human now?"
"His memories as the Doctor are locked away in his head," Evy told her, giving her a small thankful smile at the change, "While his essence, the entirety of his Time Lord being, as well as remnants of his memories, are in the watch. He's not truly a human but the watch isn't truly a Time Lord either. The Filter is designed to keep others, mostly aliens, especially a Time Lord, from sensing the Time Lady essence in me. John's not a Time Lord and the watch doesn't have a Time Lord mind to fool. The separation is allowing both him and the watch to pick up on the Link and see me for what I would be to them."
"What's that?" Martha looked at her.
"For him," she nodded towards John, "I'm a woman, a human, that he probably thinks is perfect for him. As for the watch, it senses me as a Time Lady, its Link. There's just something in him that's pulling him to me, trying to establish that connection the Link would form."
"Well, that's good, isn't it?" she smiled, maybe her work at getting the two of them together wouldn't be so hard.
"No," Evy disagreed, "It just makes it more complicated."
Martha frowned. Or maybe not. If the one who actually knew about the Link was fighting its affects, how on Earth was she going to keep with her plan when both she and the ignorant Doctor were fighting it once he was the Doctor again?
"I'm going to keep an eye on him," Evy said suddenly, pulling Martha from her thoughts. She looked up to see John walking off with Nurse Redfern.
"I'll try and track down Timothy," Martha began.
"No," Evy cut in.
"What? Why?"
"If the Family finds us, they'll be looking for you and me to get to him," she gestured to John's retreating figure, "They'll never think to look for it in the hands of a human schoolboy."
"Yeah, suppose you're right," Martha sighed, seeing John disappear around a corner, "You'd best be off then. Make sure he doesn't get into any trouble like the Doctor would."
Evy just nodded before walking off in the direction John had just gone down.
~8~
Evy frowned as she entered the town, she'd lost sight of John and was starting to grow worried. She could feel he was perfectly safe through the Link, the connection would be there in some form no matter what species he turned himself into, but not having him in her sight was less than reassuring.
She sighed, leaning against a shop and resigning herself to what she was about to do next. She closed her eyes, scrunching her face in concentration as she worked on altering her brainwaves just enough to be on something of a human level. It was how Time Lords were able to read the minds of others. They were a mildly telepathic race, usually needing a physical connection to read the mind of another. But with a lot of practice and effort they could manipulate their minds to read the surface thoughts of other species, even project their thoughts if they wished, as she had proved to the Torchwood team. Having a capacity to handle a Time Lord mind though meant that John would be operating at a wave just a bit higher than human. So she focused on that, the closer she got to him, the louder his thoughts would become, she just had to reach out and…
'…that was just a dream,' she could hear in her mind, a bit strong. Good, that meant he was close by.
She pushed off the wall, opening her eyes but keeping her head down as she walked, trying to keep her focus going.
'All those images of mud and wire,' she heard Joan saying to him, 'You told of a shadow, a shadow falling across the entire world.'
She turned down a path, walking up a slight incline, passing a woman pushing a pram, as the words got louder, 'Well, then we can be thankful it's not true. And I'll admit mankind doesn't need warfare and bloodshed to prove itself, everyday life can provide honor and valor and...' his words trailed as she heard his thoughts shift towards her.
She must be close enough for him to see her.
'Let's hope that from now on this, this country can...'
She turned a corner, frowning, he seemed distracted by something.
'Can find its heroes in smaller places...' he trailed off again.
She was passing a shop now.
'In the most...'
There was just another little incline, as soon as she breached it she would cut her focus and start looking the old fashioned way.
'Ordinary…'
She could just barely make out a group of men holding a rope in her peripheral vision, almost there.
'Of deeds!' his voice yelled in her head.
Then suddenly all his thoughts became alarmed and directed at her. She cut the connection just in time to look up, moments before a milk churn fell before her, causing her to stumble back in shock and trip. She fell to the ground just as a piano which was being lifted by the men with the rope crashed to the ground a few feet in front of her. Moments later, as her shocked mind raced to catch up with her, she caught sight of a cricket ball on the ground next to her. She smiled fondly at it before she reached out and grabbed it, just she was helped off the ground by two of the rope pullers.
"Out of the way!" a voice called and she looked over to see John pushing past the men to grab her arms, "Are you alright?"
She let out a breath, holding out the ball to him, "I believe this is yours?" he looked down at it. Seeing recognition flash through his eyes Evy reached out and hugged him, "Thank you."
"Uh, it was…" he stumbled of his words, hugging her back, inhaling her scent, just savoring the moment, "It was just a lucky shot."
She pulled away, smiling at him, "It was amazing," she reaffirmed.
Something in his heart gave a flutter at her smile and praise and before he knew what he was doing, he'd taken her hand in his own, "Might I invite you to the village dance this evening, Ms. Evy?" he asked quickly, "As my guest?"
Evy's eyes widened in shock, she was not expecting that, "I wasn't even aware there was a dance…"
His expression fell, "Oh…well, then, that's alright. I just…"
"But I'd love to go with you, Mr. John," she cut in, teasing, earning a smile and an enthusiastic hug from the man.
He turned around, still smiling even when they caught sight of Redfern standing there a little ways away, a sad smile on her face.
"I'll escort her back," he informed the nurse, "Are you coming Matron?"
She flinched at the formal title, something that didn't go unnoticed by Evy whose smile dimmed, before shaking her head, "No, no, that's quite alright. I still have a few errands to run in town. I shall see you both at the dance then?" she waited till she received a nod from them before turning and walking off.
~8~
John beamed as he and Evy walked back to the school, passing a few fields on the way, seeing more than a few tattered scarecrows.
"So does this Doctor you dream about do these impossible things with cricket balls too?" Evy asked. He'd just finished describing a few of his dreams to her on the walk.
"Well, I discovered a talent, that's certainly true!" he laughed.
"But the Doctor has an eye for the ladies!" she teased him, referring to Joan's previous comment about the sketches in his book.
"The devil!"
"A girl at every fireplace?" she added, just trying to gleam how much of his past as the Doctor he might remember. And Madame de Pompadour was an unforgettable part of it.
But John just laughed again, "Now, there I have to protest, Evy, that's hardly me!"
"You'd be surprised," she muttered, when he stopped walking to stare at a scarecrow hanging oddly.
"That scarecrow's all skewed," he commented before crossing the furrows, pulling her along by the hand he'd entwined with hers some time ago. He quickly began straightening the stuffed man across his frame.
"Ever the artist I see," she laughed, before looking at him curiously, "Might I as where you learned to draw?"
"Gallifrey," he answered quickly.
She blinked, apparently some things were coming through, "Is that in...Ireland?" she hesitated to ask, trying to keep the hope that he'd correct her out of her mind.
"Yes," he said after a moment, sounding just as hesitant, but for a different reason, he was unsure, "It must be, yes."
"But you're not Irish?" she pressed, trying to push him just a bit more. If she could get some semblance of the Doctor back, just enough to open the watch if need came to it…
"Not at all, no," he shrugged. She frowned, she could tell he was about to go into the mind frame of the story downloaded into his brain, "My father Sidney was a watchmaker from Nottingham and my mother Verity was a mechanic, actually."
"A mechanic?" Evy raised an eyebrow, vaguely wondering if some aspect of her had somehow made its way into the story the Doctor had given John, she was a handy little repair-woman herself, "Really?"
He shrugged again, "She had lot of brothers. Sort of a family business."
"Well we do make such good wives."
He paused, looking over at her, "You're a mechanic?"
She gave him a sly grin, "Something of the sort. I'm told I'm very good at fixing things."
He looked over at the scarecrow, "And you didn't think to help me fix this?"
She just laughed and linked her arm with him, pulling him away and down the road.
~8~
They were back in John's study, Evy sitting, a bit uncomfortable, as John tried to sketch her. She'd been sitting there for about an hour, a record for her. Being Linked to the Doctor, one similarity they shared was the inability to sit still for very long.
"Can I see?" she asked as he finally lowered the book, indicating he was finished.
Instead of handing it over to her he got up and moved to sit on the sofa next to her. He held up the book for her to see and her mouth dropped open in shock. It was stunning, very well drawn, she'd never had any sort of artistic ability in any of her regenerations.
"Oh, my," she breathed, "I don't really look like that, do I?" she was a bit stunned by the actual depiction. He made her out to be some sort of beauty in the ink.
"Most definitely," he smiled.
She shook her head, "You've made me far too beautiful."
"Well that's how I see you."
She looked up at him, "But you've only just met me John, not even a day ago."
"But it feels like a lifetime I've known you," he said, his voice deep as he fondly brushed some hair from her face. He began leaning towards her until he was able to place a gentle kiss on her lips a moment before pulling away.
"I've never, um..." he looked into her eyes and found himself at a loss for words like he often was in her presence. Instead, he leaned in and kissed her again, a long, loving kiss full of such promise that Evy couldn't stop the tear that escaped her eye as she felt her hearts break, knowing what would eventually come.
He'd open the watch and forget all about this and before that happened he'd learn the truth about John Smith and the Doctor and be devastated.
Just as he was about to deepen the kiss the door flew open and Martha ran in.
"Martha, what have I told you about entering unannounced?" he demanded, pulling back from the kiss.
Martha's eyes widened as she stared at them, before rushing out of the room, shutting the door behind her and leaning against the wall in shock, "Well that happened sooner than I expected," she muttered to herself.
However, inside the room, Evy jumped to her feet, wiping the tear from her eye before John could notice.
"I'm sorry about her Evy," he sighed, standing up. He moved towards her, reaching out to take her hand, but she pulled away.
"No," she shook her head, backing up towards the door, "I'm sorry, but...I can't."
She ran out the door, shutting it behind her, to see Martha leaning against the wall across the hall, she ran over to her, "Martha, please tell me the Doctor left some sort of instruction about this."
"What?" she frowned, the thrill she'd been feeling now gone.
"Please?" Evy begged.
"No," Martha shook her head, "I don't think he did."
"Show me the video again. The whole thing, there must be something!"
~8~
There was nothing. They'd watched the video four times already but there was nothing about what to do should the Doctor or John Smith fall in love. The only comfort the girls could see was that he'd fallen for Evy and not a human, that could have complicated the matter even more.
"Four, you," the Doctor was saying as the video played again, "Don't let me abandon you."
"Of course he wouldn't think about women," Evy mumbled, fast forwarding to the end, as far as he knew their species ended with him, his Link was dead with the planet, there would be no woman to fall in love with, "What the hell am I supposed to do?"
"Thank you," the Doctor finished, Evy pausing on his smiling face.
She frowned, reaching out to brush her fingers over the still frame of the Doctor, even sitting there he was so different than John, but they were the same person. And the Link, the connection, the tug she felt, it didn't care, human, Time Lord, as long as it was HIM.
"Nothing!" she pushed away from the screen to walk around the console to face Martha as she sat on the captain's chair watching the Time Lady, "What should we do now?"
Martha sighed, "We get you ready for the dance."
~8~
They were walking back to the school when Evy spotted Timothy sitting on a bench, toying with the watch, "You go ahead," she told Martha, before walking towards him, "I'll be there in a moment."
The closer she got to the bench, the clearer she could hear the whisperings of the watch as Timothy did, "The darkness is coming...keep me away from the force and empty man...the last of the Time Lords, the last of a wise and ancient race..."
Timothy looked to the side to see Baines walk over to another man, Mr. Clarke, who was then joined by a little girl holding a red balloon. They all looked over at him a moment later, tilting their head to the side and sniffing deeply.
"You should put that away till they've gone," a voice said beside him. He turned to see Ms. Daniels, Martha's friend, sitting next to him but glancing away from the trio so they couldn't see her face. He looked down at the watch, hiding it beside him as he turned to look back at the trio still standing there. They stayed that way a moment longer before their heads snapped to the side and they walked off.
"You know what they are?" Timothy turned to glance at her, just sensing that.
She nodded, "It's not them anymore."
He picked the watch up again and examined it before she spoke again, "So that's where he's gone to then?"
He looked up, startled, "You know about the man trapped inside?"
"The Doctor. Last of the Time Lords of Gallifrey."
"The Doctor," he nodded, "That's what he called himself. How do you know about him?"
Evy sighed, looking at him frowning at the watch, "You're frightened of him, aren't you?" Timothy just looked up at her again, searching her eyes for something before nodding and looking down in shame, "There's nothing to be ashamed of Tim, anyone not scared of the Doctor is a fool."
"But you're not afraid," he said suddenly, his senses telling him it was true.
She smiled, reaching over towards the watch before hesitating, "May I?" he lifted the watch in his hand, expecting her to take it but instead she clasped her hand over his, pressing the watch between their hands.
He gasped as his mind was flooded with images so very different from the ones he'd seen. He saw the Doctor, for it was the Doctor, but he was smiling and laughing. He was hugging people and saving them from monsters. He was joking and making people laugh. He seemed so human, so warm, so kind…
Evy pulled her hand away and the images disappeared.
"How did you do that?" he looked at her, his brow furrowed in confusion. She just held a finger to her lip as the watch began whispering excitedly.
"…Link…let her hold us…" it whispered to him, he held out the watch to her but she shook her head, "…protect her…keep her from the Family…not the last…there's another…finally…safe…"
"What does all that mean?" Tim shook his head.
"The last thing he wants to do," she nodded to the watch, "Is scare me," she laughed a bit, "As if he could. I've known him at his worst, at his most terrible..." she trailed before smiling, "And at his best."
He looked down at the watch, brief snippets of information filtering though his head, "You're his Link…" he said slowly, "You're his."
"And he's mine."
"Then this is yours," he tried to give her the watch again but she refused.
"I can't."
"But it wants to be held. It wants you to hold it."
"In my hands Tim, he can easily be found by those who wish to harm him," she explained, "My holding it is like it being opened. They can sense it. So I need to ask something big of you Tim, perhaps too big."
"What?" he looked at her, "Anything."
"Keep him safe," she stood, "Watch over him till the time is right. Can you do that?"
He looked at the watch for a moment before looking at her. He nodded, standing, and putting the watch safely in his pocket.
~8~
Martha held out a dress she'd plucked from the TARDIS for Evy, waiting in the room for her to get back from speaking with Timothy. She'd learned quite a bit more about Evy as a person on their way back. Heading out to the TARDIS Evy had been silent, only saying how she hoped there was something about what to do should John fall in love with someone. But on the way back, Martha had had to ask the question that had been bothering her since Evy ran out of John's study crying.
She had asked her what was wrong with the Doctor or John falling in love with her. Surely it could have been worse had he fallen for someone like nurse Redfern, a human.
Evy had sighed and explained that, John being so willing to kiss her, getting so close to her so fast, was a sign that the Link was trying to establish itself on his part. She said it wouldn't truly connect as the Doctor was human and only had the vague remnant sensations of what a Link would feel like, that, in his human mindframe, he might associate that sort of connection with love, confuse the two. The Link couldn't be completed either because the watch didn't have a Time Lord mind to connect to her.
That had just led to her asking the important question, why didn't she want the Doctor to Link to her? She still wanted to know why the woman hadn't told him she was a Time Lady, but she'd learned so much about the Link in such a short time, she really wanted to get everything straight. And...she could tell it was hard enough just talking about her connection to the Doctor, her reasons behind hiding who she was would have to wait till another time.
The answer surprised her greatly. She did want the Doctor to Link to her, of course she did, but she didn't want to hurt him.
She explained that he cared very much for Rose, something even Martha could sense despite not being a Time Lord or connected to the Doctor. He cared for his former companion so much she might even say he loved her. For him to Link to someone would mean that whatever relationship he'd formed with Rose, whatever connection they had, would be severed. Not completely destroyed but dimmed greatly. He wouldn't feel for Rose what he had felt if he Linked to her. Especially at first.
The moment of Linking was an overwhelming experience. And, until the sensations settled, it was fairly hard to cope with suddenly being so connected to someone else. All connections formed with others paled in comparison. Typically, in Links that led to romantic feelings, this person would be the most important person in your world. Their Link was always and would always be more important than anything. Evy knew it would hurt the Doctor to know that he suddenly didn't care for Rose as much as he had, especially since she had been so important to him. She'd even gone on to say, God forbid, there was a situation where a choice had to be made, Evy or Rose, and the Doctor was Linked, romantically, to Evy, he'd pick her without hesitating. Apparently Links were both a more advanced consciousness of a Time Lord but could also render in them very primal instincts. Protection of your Link came so naturally, you put them above everything else. They're happiness, their safety, came first.
It explained so much. The Doctor, somewhere in his mind, would be disheartened about the loss of his relationship with Rose if he Linked to Evy before he was ready to let go. And, knowing he would be, was preventing Evy from Linking to him. He wasn't ready to let go.
To be honest, Evy wasn't certain if he ever would, but if that were true, then she would be content to never Link to him. No, not content, but she would bear it, just to see him stay happy.
And then there was the little issue of...if the Doctor did develop romantic feelings after the establishment of the Link at all.
It must be terrifying for Evy to love the man so completely and not have a clue as to what sort of feelings might develop from him. She honestly believed that the Doctor had to have some sort of romantic feelings for Evy if the way John Smith was acting was anything to go on. But Evy refused to see it. Evy didn't strike her as the sort of person to do anything without some sort of knowledge that everything would be alright in the end, without having some sort of backup plan. But there was no way to have one in this situation.
If the Doctor Linked to Evy before he was ready, she knew Evy was frightened of the thought that his relationship and feelings for Rose might influence the Link. That it might make him less inclined to develop and return the same feelings that Evy had.
And for all they knew of Linking, which not even the Time Lords had a specific knowledge of, she could be right.
Martha shook her head, smoothing out the dress. That girl…she was something else. She really should have competed with Tallulah and Lazlo. Evy and the Doctor were like star crossed lovers, meant to be together (she just knew it) but with everything keeping them apart.
The door opened and Evy stepped through, giving her a brief smile and a nod, Timothy was alright. Martha returned the smile, showing nothing of her inner turmoil for her friend, "Let's get you ready then."
~8~
John was rushing around his room, which looked as though a storm had blown through it from the utter disarray. He was standing by a mirror, holding up two ties, similar in design, but just a bit different in color. He was looking between the two before tossing the navy one to the side and beginning to put a black one around his neck. He turned away, glancing at the jacket lying on his bed, when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in!" he shouted, not looking behind him. He heard the door open as he finally managed to work the tie, "I apologize for the mess Martha but I'm in a bit of a rush. I must speak with Evy about…"
He turned around and his words died in his throat as his hands froze mid-tie-tightening. It wasn't Martha who had entered the room, it was Evy.
His eyes widened as he looked at her. She was dressed in a very pale green evening gown with long sleeves billowing just a bit but with tight cuffs. It was ruffled around the V neckline and fell in a series of about five layers from a high waisted, dark green belt. Her hair was pulled back by a small green clip. She was beautiful, well, she was always beautiful to him but now…she was…words couldn't describe it.
She smiled softly at his familiar reaction before walking over to him. She reached out and gently shut his mouth, which had fallen open, before taking the tie from his hands and doing it herself.
"You look wonderful," he managed to get out as she stepped back.
"Thank you," she blushed, "You look very handsome."
He fidgeted, "I um…I didn't think you would come tonight," he rubbed the back of his neck, "I feared I may have offended you or done something wrong before…you rushed out so…"
"I'm sorry," she interrupted him lightly, "It wasn't anything you did. I suppose…I was just startled. I was not expecting it. I fear I was a bit overwhelmed," a smile soon grew on his face at her words. He hadn't scared her off, "You'd best give me some warning, um, can you actually dance?" she raised an elegant eyebrow. She knew from the Link a few of his incarnations could dance, but could the human him?
"Um..." he frowned in thought, "I'm not certain..."
"There's a surprise," she laughed, it was odd to hear the Doctor say he didn't know something, it was rare.
He stepped towards her, "You said before that it was unexpected yes?" she nodded, "So…" he stepped closer, "If I were to…give you fair warning…" he took another step till he was right in front of her. He leaned in a bit, barely an inch from her mouth, "May I kiss you Evy?"
He did not get a reply save the feel of her pressing her lips to his.
~8~
Martha let out a breath as she set down a pot of tea on an elaborate tray and smiled to herself. She'd just finished getting Evy ready for the dance. It had taken a bit of convincing to get her to not back out on John.
The way Martha saw it, and eventually convinced Evy of the same, the Link couldn't form while the Doctor was human, there was no harm in a dance. She'd just left her and gone to the cook to deliver some tea to Mr. Poole only to find he didn't want it and she was free to have it. It would be a nice cup of tea for her and Jenny, a fine way to end a turbulent day.
She looked up just as the door opened and smiled wider when Jenny walked in, "There you are! Come and look what I've got. Mr. Poole didn't want his afternoon tea so cook said I could have it. And there's enough for two," she frowned a bit when Jenny just stood there, "What are you standing there for?" Jenny sniffed deeply, "Are you alright?"
"I must have a cold coming on," Jenny finally spoke, walking over to sit at the small table with Martha.
"Problem is, I keep thinking about them but I don't know what to do," Martha sighed. As soon as the Doctor was himself again, all the work she'd done to get John and Evy together would be for nothing and she'd have to start again.
"Thinking about who?" Jenny tilted her head.
"Mr. Smith and Evy," she smiled sadly, "'Cos they've finally just got together right, and he'll be gone in a few weeks."
"Why?"
"It's like he's going to leave, like his contract comes to an end," she sighed, "And she's gonna be heartbroken but she's not going to say a thing to let him know."
"Leave for where?"
"All sorts of places. I wish I could tell you Jenny, but it's complicated."
"In what way?" she didn't even blink.
"I just can't," Martha shook her head.
"It sounds so interesting," Jenny replied, but there was something in her voice that just didn't sound right, "Tell me. Tell me now."
Martha frowned, it wasn't like Jenny to pry so forcefully, "Would you like some tea?"
"Yes thanks," she nodded slightly.
"I could put a nice bit of gravy in the pot," Martha tested, "And some mutton. Or sardines and jam, how about that?"
"I like the sound of that."
Martha bit back the stiffening she felt, "Right...hold on a tick."
She got up slowly and moved towards the door, trying to remain as calm as she could so as to not alert the woman, who was clearly not Jenny any longer, to her suspicions. She shut the door behind her, walking towards the stairs before breaking into a run. She managed to get outside the building when a blast of familiar green light hit the ground behind her, just barely missing her foot.
She ran as fast as she could back to John's study, rushing through the door, barely noticing him and Evy separating from what was probably a very loving kiss.
"They've found us," Martha exclaimed, rushing up to Evy.
"Martha, I've warned you…" John began, but Martha wasn't listening.
"They've found us and I've seen them…" she gasped, grabbing Evy's hands, "They look like people, like us, like normal."
"I know," Evy squeezed her hands, she had been able to tell the three she'd seen near Tim were members of the Family, "Martha, I know, there were three of them…"
"They've got Jenny," Martha cut in, knowing which three she was talking about, "They've taken her too."
Evy glanced up to see John staring at them curiously. Getting him all riled up would not help their cause later, "Excuse me John," she quickly said, pulling Martha out of the room and shutting the door before he could say anything, "They've taken Jenny?" she asked, Martha nodded frantically, "Then they've completed their integration to Earth. There are only four to a Family. They're all here now."
"What do we do?" she asked, "Without the watch…"
Evy frowned, thinking quickly, "The sonic screwdriver," she said, "If we can't get the watch, maybe we can get just enough of the Doctor out of him to get him to leave with us by showing him some of the things from the TARDIS."
Martha nodded, that could work, "I'll go get it. You take him to the dance and keep an eye on him. I'll meet up with you there, yeah?"
Evy sighed, already knowing Martha wouldn't listen to her about not wanting her to head out on her own. She nodded, squeezing her hand once more before Martha took off down the hall. Moments later the door behind her opened and John peeked his head out.
"I heard Martha rush off," he muttered, "Everything alright?"
Evy nodded, "Yes…just…um…culture shock?" she ventured, "She…something about aliens?"
John nodded in understanding, it must be hard for Martha to be around people so different from her.
~8~
Martha ran off into the night, not even bothering to get a bicycle in her haste to get to the TARDIS. She ran around a corner, bumping into Tim.
"Oh sorry!" she shouted, rushing off, not even realizing it was Tim she'd run into nor that he still had the watch that they needed, all she was focused on was getting to the TARDIS.
Tim frowned as he saw Martha running away from him but in much different clothes than her maid's uniform. But the vision faded the farther she got.
He looked down at the watch, "Danger…" it whispered, "They are coming…find our Link…find her…protect her…"
~8~
Evy looked up from glancing around the room of the dance hall she and John had entered only moments ago when she sensed something behind her. She glanced over to see Tim sneaking into the room before something red caught her eye. She saw the little girl, sitting at a table, holding a red balloon. She kept the frown from forming on her face as she turned back to Tim, catching his eye and nodding ever so slightly over towards the girl. He followed her gaze before nodding back to her and slipping behind the crowd to disappear into the back of the room.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" a man announced, "Please take your partners for a waltz."
John held out a hand to her which she took before he led her onto the dance floor just as the music began.
"So you can dance," she commented as he led her around the floor in perfect time, not even stepping on her feet.
"I've surprised myself," he smiled, before they bumped into another pair, "Sorry."
She laughed as they got back to the dance, "It seems I've spoken too soon."
~8~
There was one thing to be said, this John Smith really was quite the dancer. He'd kept her going for five dances before finally asking her if she'd like something to drink. She agreed and he led her off the dance floor and went to get the refreshments. She looked around, her eyes quickly scanning for Tim, then checking on the girl, before she noticed Nurse Redfern, not for the first time either. Throughout the dances she had shared with John she had seen the matron watching with a sort of forlorn, resigned look. It tugged at her hearts because she knew that John and the matron had been close before she had arrived, Martha had told her so. And even if she hadn't informed her, it was obvious enough to her that the nurse fancied John Smith a bit more than she let on.
She sighed, walking over to the matron's table, sitting down across from her, "He's different from any other man you've ever met," Evy said quietly, it wasn't a question but more of a statement.
Redfern looked up, eyeing the girl before her closely, as though studying her. Evy knew what she was doing, she was trying to see what John Smith saw in her that he didn't see in anyone else.
"Yes," she answered finally.
Evy nodded, "And you can't help but love him," Redfern looked at her sharply, startled, "Don't feel bad…not many people who meet him don't fall in love with him in some way."
"And you?" Redfern asked tersely, she just couldn't fathom why John was so keen on her. It had taken him two months of getting to know her before he worked up enough power to just hold even the briefest conversations with her, and then this girl shows up and he's all silver-tongued.
"I've loved him far longer than he remembers," she sighed, "And much longer than he's aware."
"You've only just met him," Redfern retorted, getting a bit worked up, "And suddenly he's so taken with you. He doesn't even look at m…" she trailed off, embarrassed that she had gotten so caught up.
"He doesn't even look at you how he used to," Evy finished, "Like you were special?"
Redfern stared at her, her eyes wide in disbelief, how had she known?
Before she could even speak, Martha ran over to them.
"Have you got it?" Evy stood up to face Martha. Martha nodded, pulling out a small metal cylinder with a light on the end, the sonic screwdriver.
"What's that?" a voice said beside them, they looked up to see John standing there with two drinks in his hand.
Martha glanced at Evy before holding it up to John, "Do you know what this is?"
John stared at it, just the barest flash of recognition flashing in his eyes, "Name it," Evy encouraged lightly, "Go on, name it."
He reached out, putting the cups down and slowly took the sonic out of her hands, turning it over in his own.
"You're not John Smith," Martha told him gently, "You're called the Doctor. The man in your journal, he's real. He's you."
John opened his mouth, as though about to name the device, when someone stormed into the room, knocking over a hat stand, causing people to shriek and move away. Evy looked up to see a man possessed by the Family standing there with an alien gun in his hand. She reached out and pulled Martha behind her. Martha looked over at her friend's serious expression before realizing this man was part of the Family.
"There will be silence!" he shouted, "All of you!"
Scarecrows began to file in the room after him with the boy Evy saw in the hall and Jenny.
"That's them, isn't it?" Martha whispered to Evy who nodded, her eyes trained on them.
"I said silence!" the man shouted again.
"Mr. Clarke!" the announcer demanded, "What's going on?"
Mr. Clarke just turned on him, firing his weapon at the announcer who dissolved into nothing but dust.
"Mr. Smith, everything I told you, just forget it!" Martha exclaimed quickly amidst the shrieking, "Don't say anything."
"We asked for silence!" the boy, Baines, called out, forcing everyone to be silent, "Now then. We have a few questions for Mr. Smith."
"No, better than that," the little girl with the balloon said, skipping over to the Family, "The teacher. He's the Doctor. I heard them talking."
Evy cursed silently to herself, she hadn't even noticed the girl had snuck over to them as she focused on helping John remember.
"You took human form," Baines stared at John.
"Of course I'm human, I was born human!" John exclaimed, "As were you, Baines. And Jenny, and you, Mr. Clarke! What is going on? This is madness!"
"And a human brain, too!" Baines laughed, "Simple, thick and dull."
"He's no good like this," Jenny commented.
"We need a Time Lord," Clarke added.
"Easily done," Baines replied. He stepped forward, raising his gun and aiming it at John as the crowd gasped. Evy jolted to move to help him but Martha grabbed her arm.
"We don't need you exposed too," she hissed to her friend, knowing that if she drew too much attention to herself the Family would notice her, and then they might notice the Perception Filter.
"Change back," Baines demanded.
"I don't know what you're talking about," John shook his head.
"Change back!"
"I literally do not know…" he began but Jenny reached out and grabbed Martha who had been so startled by the move that she dropped Evy's arm.
"Get off me!" Martha shouted as Jenny pulled her to her, holding her against her like a shield but with the gun to her head.
"Martha!" Evy shouted, moving forward but John pulled her back, pushing her behind him.
"She's your friend, isn't she?" Jenny tilted her head, "Doesn't this scare you enough to change back?"
"I don't know what you mean!" he said frantically, moving to step to the side, trying to block Evy from her gun.
Jenny tilted her head even more as his action called something to her attention, "Wait a minute...the maid told me about Smith and the woman...that woman, there!" she pointed at Evy.
"Let's have you!" Clarke shouted, quickly grabbing Evy from behind John before he could react.
Clarke held her by the arm in front of him, his gun at her, but not held as close as Martha was to Jenny.
"Let her go!" John shouted, glaring at the man.
"Have you enjoyed it, Doctor?" Baines asked, "Being human? Has it taught you wonderful things, are you better, richer, wiser? Then let's see you answer this. Which one of them do you want us to kill? Maid or mistress? Your friend or your love?"
Martha gulped, Evy's words coming back to her. If there ever came a time for the Doctor to choose between Rose and a Linked Evy, he'd not hesitate to pick Evy. The Link was trying to break through…and she knew…she knew who John Smith would pick.
"Your choice."
To be continued…
A/N: So now we know more about the Link, the good and bad, as well as Evy's reasons for not wanting the Doctor to Link to her right now. This isn't all of her reasons for not letting him know she's a Time Lady though, that will be explained in Blink :)
